honorable mention
Joep Hijwegen netherlands
title
Existential Street Photography
My series ‘Existential Street Photography is defined by candid images intended not to reflect reality but what's within. Photography for me started therapeutically: I experienced life as a movie, incredibly beautiful, but something I only watched and wasn't really a part of. Struggling with feelings of anxiety and alienation in my dealings with strangers on the street, I decided to start taking pictures as a way to direct the film that is my life. This series aims to show the power of the subjective. I want to show that by way of framing and exposing, we can alter reality and make it more dramatic, narrative and meaningful than it actually is. For me photography is about finding meaning and order in a world that seems random, and I hope to inspire others to do the same. There’s so much talk about the world becoming duller, emptier and more individualistic. My photographs are a counterpoint to that: the more that inherent meaning and mystery is wiped out, the more our freedom increases to frame life as we see fit and invent meaning ourselves.
Hijwegen’s photography very quickly became not about preserving moments but about creating them. It is this powerful feeling of being able to create meaning and beauty out of randomness that drives his passion to this day.
He signed with the Kahmann Gallery in Amsterdam in 2020. He has self-published two books, with Blue Hours currently spawning his first solo exhibition at MENDO BOOKS. When he is not out photo- graphing, Joep is usually watching movies, reading books or listening to music. He is particularly passionate about existential philosophy, sci-fi movies, instrumental jazz and hip hop, all of which serve as inspiration for his work.
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entry description
My series ‘Existential Street Photography is defined by candid images intended not to reflect reality but what's within. Photography for me started therapeutically: I experienced life as a movie, incredibly beautiful, but something I only watched and wasn't really a part of. Struggling with feelings of anxiety and alienation in my dealings with strangers on the street, I decided to start taking pictures as a way to direct the film that is my life. This series aims to show the power of the subjective. I want to show that by way of framing and exposing, we can alter reality and make it more dramatic, narrative and meaningful than it actually is. For me photography is about finding meaning and order in a world that seems random, and I hope to inspire others to do the same. There’s so much talk about the world becoming duller, emptier and more individualistic. My photographs are a counterpoint to that: the more that inherent meaning and mystery is wiped out, the more our freedom increases to frame life as we see fit and invent meaning ourselves.
about the photographer
Joep Hijwegen (1994) is a self-taught, fine art photographer residing in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Born in a rural village, he first picked up a camera while working on a BA in Philosophy in Utrecht. At first only photographing as a form of self-therapy, he became more and more obsessed with the medium as a way of ‘re-framing life’ and supplying it with meaning. Hijwegen’s photography can be described as Exis- tential Street Photography. His work says more about himself, than about the street scenes it depicts. He started photographing as a way of coping with his fear of ‘fading away’ in the business of modern life. He felt he couldn’t connect to anyone or anything, which made him feel distant to life. With this distance, came both an appreciation of observing life, as well as a frustration of not being able to connect to it. Photographing became a way for Hijwegen to capture his alienation. It also allowed him to show his perspective to others and feel more noted and understood.Hijwegen’s photography very quickly became not about preserving moments but about creating them. It is this powerful feeling of being able to create meaning and beauty out of randomness that drives his passion to this day.
He signed with the Kahmann Gallery in Amsterdam in 2020. He has self-published two books, with Blue Hours currently spawning his first solo exhibition at MENDO BOOKS. When he is not out photo- graphing, Joep is usually watching movies, reading books or listening to music. He is particularly passionate about existential philosophy, sci-fi movies, instrumental jazz and hip hop, all of which serve as inspiration for his work.
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